An objective in the field of computer graphics is to recreate realistic images of three-dimensional environments using a computer. These images and the models used to generate them have an incredible variety of applications, from movies, games, and other entertainment applications, to architecture, city planning, design, teaching, medicine, and many others.
Traditional techniques in computer graphics attempt to create realistic scenes using geometric modeling, reflection and material modeling, light transport simulation, and perceptual modeling. Despite the tremendous advances that have been made in these areas in recent years, such computer modeling techniques are not able to create convincing photorealistic images of real and complex scenes.
An alternate approach, known as image-based modeling and rendering (IBMR) is becoming increasingly popular, both in computer vision and graphics. IBMR techniques focus on the creation of three-dimensional rendered scenes starting from photographs of the real world. Often, multiple photographs, taken from various viewpoints are used to derive an “image-based representation” of a scene, which includes information on the geometry, textures, and lighting of the scene. This information may be used to render photorealistic images of the scene from novel viewpoints.
Existing IBMR techniques have focused on the problems of modeling and rendering captured scenes from photographs, while little attention has been given to the problems of interactively creating or editing an image-based representation. While numerous software packages (such as ADOBE PHOTOSHOP, by Adobe Systems Incorporated, of San Jose, Calif.) provide photo-editing capabilities, none of these packages adequately addresses the problems of interactively creating or editing image-based representations of three-dimensional scenes.
What is needed is editing software that includes familiar photo-editing tools adapted to handle depth, geometry, and lighting information in an image-based representation of a three-dimensional scene.